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The Langley: Residential High-Rise At 1717 Bissonnet St.


musicman

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So, you think that most of the time there's a demolition, said demolition harms other people's property?

 

This is actually quite rare. As a homeowner, I have empathy with this guy. I wouldn't be happy about this. Before the fence came down, debris was literally hitting his house and the guys swinging the sledgehammers didn't seem to notice... and that was with a camera filming them.

 

If I was this guy, I'd be tempted to gather up all the brick and mortar scraps and deliver them to the developers yard over in West U.

 

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So, you think that most of the time there's a demolition, said demolition harms other people's property?

 

This is actually quite rare. As a homeowner, I have empathy with this guy. I wouldn't be happy about this. Before the fence came down, debris was literally hitting his house and the guys swinging the sledgehammers didn't seem to notice... and that was with a camera filming them.

 

If I was this guy, I'd be tempted to gather up all the brick and mortar scraps and deliver them to the developers yard over in West U.

 

Depending on proximity, I'd say this is indeed a fairly common occurrence.  In Houston it isn't much of a problem since usually everything is so spread out, but in other cities I'd imagine it's quite common for demolition related activities to cause minor harm to a direct neighbor. 

 

The guy certainly should be compensated though.

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So, you think that most of the time there's a demolition, said demolition harms other people's property?

 

This is actually quite rare. As a homeowner, I have empathy with this guy. I wouldn't be happy about this. Before the fence came down, debris was literally hitting his house and the guys swinging the sledgehammers didn't seem to notice... and that was with a camera filming them.

 

If I was this guy, I'd be tempted to gather up all the brick and mortar scraps and deliver them to the developers yard over in West U.

 

Given the proximity of the demo'd wall to the rotten fence, this is not rare at all. Considering that the homeowner will now get his rotten fence replaced free of charge, I can think of no reason for sympathy. He just won.

 

I look forward to making fun of these crybabies for the next year or so, however. 

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Nothing at all "funny" about that...

 

I'd be willing to bet that you wouldn't like it very much if bricks were flying over your head, through your fence or into your house...or if they put a 21 story residential tower 5 feet behind your back fence either, for that matter.

 

Not cool.

 

Exaggerate much? Bricks flying overhead? Really?

 

Not only is the video funny...as well as the hideous accent of the homeowner...but so is your post expressing alarm.

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Don't you watch fail videos? I can see this being on "Fail Vids May 2013."

 

But anyway, no of course I wouldn't. I'm laughing at the expensive of other people's misery. Isn't that the whole premise of America's Funniest Home Videos? Pretty sure these people are going to sue and probably get a much nicer fence. These construction workers were careless though... what if this guy's kids or animals were down there. Yea, I'd be pissed and probably sue.

 

Most "fail" videos I've seen (and really the only ones I truly consider "funny") are the kind where someone does something stupid to themselves, and there's little or no actual harm done for the most part. This is different...but thanks for clearing that up and addressing my point. I hope you're right about these people getting compensated. I would be seriously pissed about this, too. It shouldn't have to happen to you (or anyone) personally to piss you off...know what I mean?

Edited by por favor gracias
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Exaggerate much? Bricks flying overhead? Really?

 

Not only is the video funny...as well as the hideous accent of the homeowner...but so is your post expressing alarm.

 

From the article:

 

"The bricks that came flying over my fence landed only six inches away from my gas meter."

 

If anyone's exaggerating, you are about that accent. It's not THAT bad is it?

Edited by por favor gracias
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It would be funny if someone checked the survey and discovered the fence was actually on the developer's property. I'm surprised, though, that the developer isn't more careful given the high level of opposition from the neighbors. It is a sure bet they'll be watching like a hawk for any mistakes.

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From the article:

 

"The bricks that came flying over my fence landed only six inches away from my gas meter."

 

If anyone's exaggerating, you are about that accent. It's not THAT bad is it?

 

Just inches aways from potentially being even funnier.

Edited by xsatyr
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I think the city would be very concerned about this, or at least centerpoint.

 

How is it possible that he is standing so close to power lines? That can't be up to code. Also, it appears that there are trees, or other things very close to the power lines growing from this guys backyard. Someone should notify the city so they can go take care of this issue, especially since access will be made easy once they complete demolition.

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Honestly, this is preventable. All those contractors needed to do was put up temporary barricades for the small debris, and plan their demo of the large debris better.

 

If my company can demo steel reinforced concrete 150 feet in the air and prevent ALL debris from falling on workers below or in process lines (refinery work), then I'm sure taking down a masonry reinforced brick wall within a constrained area should be quite easy for this company. This happened because of poor preplanning and for that, I blame the Project Management team. They should have the foresight to see that theyre already in hot water with the local residents and properly preplan every method of demolition to not interfere with other people's properties. Cover, Your, Ass, project managers.

 

 

/Construction rant 

 

 

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Thank you for bringing some logic to this thread, Purdue. Boiler Up!

 

When I demolished my old garage on the alley, we put up netting to catch debris. Nothing flew onto neighboring property. It looks like zero precautions were taken which is quite surprising... and quite alarming. You'd think they'd be going out of their way to cover their collective butts from this sort of thing.

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It would be funny if someone checked the survey and discovered the fence was actually on the developer's property. I'm surprised, though, that the developer isn't more careful given the high level of opposition from the neighbors. It is a sure bet they'll be watching like a hawk for any mistakes.

 

 

http://swamplot.com/ashby-highrise-developer-knocked-down-fence-was-on-our-property/2013-06-03/

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  • 3 weeks later...

I saw this site on Monday. Man, they clear cut the heck out of that lot. It's such a huge scar and in my mind shows just how much this tower will stand out. I know this isn't a popular opinion on this thread, but I just wish someone had the opportunity to build this in the two developers' neighborhood, but sadly they can't. The two guys live in The City of West University Place. Houston is just a place for them to make a buck.

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

The property values argument was a stupid one. Boulevard Oaks, Southampton, and Cresmere Place are all highly desirable neighborhoods with strict deed restrictions, active civic associations, and incredible locations. They aren't going to crash and burn.

 

That said, Nancy's photo spread of 7 "area" homes is stupid. Not sure why a house on Sunset Blvd. nearly a mile away from the proposed site has anything to do with her point, whatever said point may have been.

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Small "n", so the 58% year-on-year increase isn't terribly reliable.

 

That said, not surprising.  There's a lot of money chasing not a lot of property in the best neighborhoods.

 

 

 

Also, this is a little like "prison populations are up, despite crime being down".  It gets the causation wrong.  Crime goes down when the criminals are in jail.  The article basically says that the area remains valuable despite a high rise going up.  But a high rise wouldn't be going up if the price per square foot of the dirt wasn't really high.

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Funny, but the only house in Nancy's blog on the same street as the proposal is listed at $599,000. That's $360,000 less than the next cheapest house listed. Of course, the next cheapest house listed isn't even technically in Southampton since it's West of Greenbrier and in the shadows of Hanover's Rice Village Apartments.

 

I am not sure the list is making the point you think it is...

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Funny, but the only house in Nancy's blog on the same street as the proposal is listed at $599,000. That's $360,000 less than the next cheapest house listed. Of course, the next cheapest house listed isn't even technically in Southampton since it's West of Greenbrier and in the shadows of Hanover's Rice Village Apartments.

 

I am not sure the list is making the point you think it is...

 

The point isn't what any individual house is being marketed for.  The point is that the average sale price is up 58% over one year ago in Boulevard Oaks, the highest increase of 18 high-end neighborhoods, and up 29% in Southampton.  And that the average sale time is 25 and 23 days, respectively "faster than many [other neighborhoods]".

Edited by Houston19514
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The point isn't what any individual house is being marketed for. The point is that the average sale price is up 58% over one year ago in Boulevard Oaks, the highest increase of 18 high-end neighborhoods, and up 29% in Southampton. And that the average sale time is 25 and 23 days, respectively "faster than many [other neighborhoods]".

They'll claim that the towers arms do not reach Boulevard Oaks thus the reason for the increase in sale price.

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Let's get real for a minute. Here's why prices are high in Southampton and Boulevard Oaks and have risen dramatically;

 

1) LOCATION. There are few better in the city. Literally minutes to the Med Center, Downtown, Uptown, and most major universities. Direct access to the city's premier park. 

 

2) Beauty. In a city that lacks beauty, this area has it. 100 year old live oaks. Tree-lined boulevards like Sunset, North, and South. Strict deed restrictions and a well cared for housing stock.

 

3) Amenities. Hermann Park. Rice University. The Rice Loop. Rice Village. Light Rail. Fleming Park. Museum District.

 

4) Schools. Poe, Lanier, and Lamar if you go the public route and multiple privates in the near vicinity.

 

5) The economy. Houston is booming. 

 

6) Demand. See #5. 

 

7) Supply. It's beyond low. 4 houses are for sale right now in Southampton proper. 

 

That is it. The tower has nothing to do with it nor do the yellow signs. And, if you are moronic enough to bypass a neighborhood because the neighbors are active participants in trying to shape its future and protect its past, then wow. Just wow.

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Poe Elem is a really fantastic school (I'm biased) and has been for decades. For many of the reasons Kinkaid outlines above, the unique location of the neighborhood attracts professionals from all different sectors. Poe is also zoned to the some lower income housing on the other side of 59. I hope that is not what turned you off? West U Elem is also great, but each school has a very distinct culture.

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Poe is a good school, and I agree that the reason it doesn't do better is the multi-family on the north side of 59.

But having ugly, arrogant signs in your yard for three years is a problem. It's like a house leaving up christmas decorations for three years, but it's an entire neighborhood. If you don't see that, wow. Just wow.

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Poe is a good school, and I agree that the reason it doesn't do better is the multi-family on the north side of 59.

But having ugly, arrogant signs in your yard for three years is a problem. It's like a house leaving up christmas decorations for three years, but it's an entire neighborhood. If you don't see that, wow. Just wow.

 

I don't see what's arrogant about it either.  Don't their property rights include free expression?

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The signs alone aren't arrogant. But i see them as representing arrogance because i associate them with the entire movement's attitude towards the development and the reasons it should be stopped. I'm not going to rehash the arguements on the previous 29 pages, but needless to say I don't support the stop Ashby highrise movement.

And regardless of how I view the signs, I stll can't imagine that people are in favor of yard signs up for three years and beyond. What purpose are they serving at this late date? Would you feel different if someone in the area put a rusty car on cinder blocks in the front yard and painted stop ashby highrise on the sides and left it there for three years?

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And regardless of how I view the signs, I stll can't imagine that people are in favor of yard signs up for three years and beyond. What purpose are they serving at this late date? Would you feel different if someone in the area put a rusty car on cinder blocks in the front yard and painted stop ashby highrise on the sides and left it there for three years?

Htown has a good point here. They fought the battle and lost. It's time for the signs to come down.

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  • 2 weeks later...

1717 Bissonnet on hold, again. Judge denied the developers a request that would keep the plaintiffs from halting the project. The case now headed for a trial set to begin in November. The developers are still committed to the project.

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/Ashby-tower-plans-suffer-setback-4851467.php?cmpid=btfpm

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  • The title was changed to The Langley: Residential High-Rise At 1717 Bissonnet St.

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